And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
Parallel translations
- WEB No one has ascended into heaven, but he who descended out of heaven, the Son of Man, who is in heaven.
- BSB No one has ascended into heaven except the One who descended from heaven—the Son of Man.
- NKJV No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven.
- NASB No one has ascended into heaven, except He who descended from heaven: the Son of Man.
- NLT No one has ever gone to heaven and returned. But the Son of Man has come down from heaven.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Only the Son of Man, who came down from heaven, has access to heavenly truth. Jesus alone can reveal God because he comes from God.
Overview
Jesus claims a unique heavenly origin: no one has ascended to bring back divine knowledge, but he has descended from heaven. The title 'Son of Man' (from Daniel 7) joins his humanity to his divine authority. This establishes his sole qualification to disclose 'heavenly things' and points to his identity as the Word made flesh.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 22
- Prov 30:4Who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended? who hath gathered the wind in his fists? who hath bound the waters in a garment? who hath established all the ends of the earth? what is his name, and what is his son’s name, if thou canst tell?
- Acts 2:34For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand,
- John 6:38For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.
- John 1:18No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
- John 13:3Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he was come from God, and went to God;
- 1 Cor 15:47The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.
- Eph 4:9–10(Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?
- John 6:62What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before?
- Rom 10:6But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down from above:)
- John 3:31He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: he that cometh from heaven is above all.
- John 6:46Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father.
- John 17:5And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
- John 6:42And they said, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? how is it then that he saith, I came down from heaven?
- Mark 16:19–20So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.
- John 8:42Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.
- Deut 30:12It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it?
- John 16:28–30I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father.
- John 6:51I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.
- John 6:33For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world.
- Acts 20:28Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.
- Matt 28:20Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
- Eph 1:23Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.
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Christ at the center
John declares him plainly: the eternal Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the great 'I AM' — bread, light, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, resurrection — that you may believe and have life in his name.
How John 3:13 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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